A Pair of Monsters
by valdezy
Summary: Akihito has been trapped in a prison cell most of his life, ever since the kingdom found out that he was a monster. Mirai's lived a peaceful life in the neighboring kingdom with princess Yui, but that falls to shreds when Yui dies at her hand - and she's thrown into the cell right next to his.
1. meeting

_The details of that day are blurry to him. He remembers it was cold; but that might have just been him, shaking and shivering in the burning guilt and freezing blood._

_ There was so much grass, and it went on forever, like a sea he couldn't reach the end of. He didn't remember anything. Just flashes of red and shouts echoing in his ears, but he doesn't remember seeing them or hearing them. He just woke up in the sea of grass, red spread around him and a path leading to a body. He couldn't answer any of his lingering questions, not now. _

_ Instead his gaze was fixed to (his friend) Hiroomi (not his friend anymore), covered in blood. That blood was on his hands, his face, his clothes. Akihito could feel it burning a hole in his heart, destroying him like a poison. What had happened? What had he done?_

_ Somebody screamed. It took him a while to realize that it was himself._

* * *

He didn't know what day it was. He had stopped counting a long time ago.

Akihito glanced at the ceiling, staring at the scratch marks that littered the rough stone. He never remembered scratching the walls or the ceiling or floor, but he saw every new mark and the fear in the guards' eyes when he woke up shivering on the cold floor, covered in blood and regrets of things he couldn't remember.

Today was one of those mornings.

His ears buzzed and his limbs ached and _really, _all he wanted to do was to sleep on a comfortable bed and maybe have an actual meal. But neither of those things looked possible in the near future, so he contented to pull himself over to his makeshift bed of pillows the Nase siblings had smuggled for him and the torn blankets and jackets he had with him. His hair splayed out onto the softest pillow and he closed his eyes, searching for sleep.

Instead, he found sniffling.

Lifting his head up, Akihito was met with a sight he wasn't sure how he missed. The cell next to his was not fully separated, but instead blocked by a row of thick metal bars. He inched forward, investigating the sound. Last he had checked, that cell was empty.

"Hello?" His hoarse voice cracked, and it came out as more of a whisper than a call. That happens when you haven't said a word in years, he supposed. He squinted in the morning light that filtered through the tiny window.

A girl, it seemed like, which was strange enough by itself. There weren't many girls to find in prison these days. And, Akihito noted, she was beautiful. Her hair was a light shade of strawberry blonde, and it fell to her chin in messy curls and tangled knots. She wore a pair of brilliant red glasses perched on her nose, and her white dress was ripped and cut, exposing the injuries on her legs.

The girl shivered but looked up. Her eyes were red and puffy and her nose was pink from tears.

"Who-who are you?" She asked cautiously.

"I'm-" His voice broke again. "-Akihito Kanbara."

"Oh."

"Oh?"

"I've never heard of you." She stared at his face, seeming a little more confident with this revelation, but also a lot more confused and concerned.

Akihito decided to just clear it up and get it out of the way. "You wouldn't," he started. "Know me." Shuffling into a more comfortable position, Akihito glanced at his new company. "I wasn't put on death row so it wouldn't have been announced to this kingdom, and certainly not the other three."

She shuffled away from him.

"Why are you in here, then?"

"Huh?"

"Why are you in here if you're not to be put on death row?"

"Well..." Akihito thought about it. What was he supposed to say? '_Oh yeah see, here's the thing- your new cell roomie is actually a monster! And I can't die! So how about we be friends and I can stare at your _really _pretty face and glasses and everything and _you _can stare at me turn into a creepy monster every time I don't eat.' _Ah yes. The best way to make friends.

But, Akihito supposed, honesty is the best policy. Better she find out when he wasn't throwing fire everywhere.

"I'm, uh." He coughed. This was tough. He never had to actually explain his situation to anyone before. Usually they just found out. "I'm immortal."

Hazel eyes widened. "_What?" _The girl squeaked. "You're- you're w_hat?"_

"Immortal."

"How? Are you a wizard, or-"

"Nothing that nice," Akihito responded. "More like a monster."

The girl blinked. She didn't seem very scared, to be honest. Just overwhelmed.

"Oh...then you and I have something in common."

Akihito's eyes shot up from staring at the cracked stone floor.

"What?"

"...I'm like you. I'm a monster too."

* * *

_Princess Yui's dress was completely ripped, splattered with blood and grime. Somewhere in the back of her head, Mirai was thinking about just how hard that was going to be to fix. _

_ Her hands were shaking. Of course they were- that wasn't odd. Not now. Not when her best friend, the only person who cared for her truly and completely in this world, was covered in black splotches and advancing towards her with no love in her eyes. _

_ Mirai whimpered and held out her blood sword, her tight grip shaking as terror filled her eyes. _

_ "Yui-Yui, please," Mirai whispered, voice raising in pitch and hysterics. "Please-please stop, please come back, I can't do this, I can't-!" _

_ And then her sword was in Yui's stomach and Yui was smiling. _

_ "Thanks," Yui whispered to her, voice hoarse and tired. _

_ Mirai was left shaking on the ground, covered in blood holding her (best friend) Yui's (not her best friend anymore) body._

* * *

**hello knk fandom i am back**

**so i don't have like any time to even blink anymore, so of course the logical course of action is writing a multi-chapter fic like heeeeeeeeeyyyyyyy**

**either way though, i've been meaning to post this for ages - i got the idea for this story months ago. i don't promise how _fast _i'll be updating, especially since i don't write multiple chapters before i post. but i do know where the story is going, so the only issue is finding time to write. i'll do my best guys! **

**and yeah like. if you like this. let me know by leaving a review? it'll make me smile which is pretty cool i mean. **


	2. bleeding

**little bit of a warning for this chapter - it's kinda dark, and involves some language. **

* * *

_He was running. Faster than he ever had before, than he could ever remember. There was blood on his hands and the wind in his hair and absolutely no escape from the guilt inside his soul. Hiroomi was still on the grass behind him and Akihito knew that he needed to go back, or get help, or _something. _But fear prompted him to run and so he did. He ran and he didn't stop and he didn't look back and the guilt ran with him._

* * *

A day later and the conversation with the girl had not moved on. Akihito still didn't know her name, her past, or anything at all about her. There was a chance he'd never know, he supposed. It was jail, there was no requirement to share anything with the unfortunate person in the cell next door.

They'd mostly kept to their own separate sides. Every once in a while Akihito heard her shuffle around and he thought about looking up, because it had been a while since anything different had happened in his life. But then he realized that if he looked at her, he'd have to move. And the heavy weight of his limbs and the constant pangs of hunger put that idea to rest.

He didn't really remember when the last time he got a good meal was - probably the last time Mitsuki had snuck down here to visit him with her illegal stash of books and a couple of moth-eaten blankets. Akihito was never sure why, but the princess just loved to spend her days insulting him in the damp hallway of the jail. Maybe it was because down here, at least, she was free from having her older brother follow her around insisting on doting on her. Mitsuki also liked to complain, in her own special way that made everyone sound dumber than they really were.

Some part of Akihito always wanted to argue when she called him names, but usually, he was just too tired. He was definitely too tired to do anything today. And too hungry. Mitsuki hadn't been down here in a while, so he hadn't been fed anything concrete for a while.

The guards were cruel creatures. Heavy armor lidded their eyes and they enjoyed taking bets on the degrading states of the prisoners until they died, whether from hanging or malnutrition or the hundreds of other reasons. The guards had learned early on that when he didn't eat, he turned evil. And that inspired fear in them, which, he'd learned, they despised more than anything. So they never fed him enough, but just the amount that would limit his transformations.

Knowing this, he honestly wasn't surprised when one of them turned their attention to the girl.

"Hey," A rough voice called, echoing off the stone walls. "Girl. Come here."

Her eyes widened in fear, flashing back to Akihito. Mildly, he shook his head. Not listening to the guards was usually a bad idea - but in this moment, he knew that doing what they said would be much, much worse.

She pushed herself back in the cell, back pressed against the wall, breathing heavily. The guards leered at her, leaning against the bars. "Ah, the little mouse is s_cared," _one of them grinned. He gripped the metal bar, roughly shaking it, an echoing clatter spreading through the hall and sending a jolt of pain through Akihito's head. Everything swam in front of his eyes - not a good sign. Some part of him desperately wanted to rush over and slam the guard's face into the wall because what the hell kind of person acts like that - but then the dizziness hit and that thought flew from his mind.

His thoughts were flying all over the place like stars blinking in and out of existence. And he figured this couldn't be good because he was starting to feel like he usually did before he blacked out, and when he blacked out he usually woke up with a hole in his memory and bloodied knuckles and bruised eyes. He would wake up loathing himself more and loathing the world more and wishing that he could just sleep and never need to wake up.

His eyes were fluttering closed because he was honestly, just always so, _so _tired.

And then the guard opened her cell. His eyes snapped open, a brief moment of lucidity and alertness sweeping over him, staring as the girl shivered in the corner.

"Hey," the guard pointed at the girl - who hadn't moved an inch since the door had been opened and now shut, as the guard closed it as he slowly walked into the cell. "How about you come over here and I can give you the punishment you deserve, you piece of filth. How about while I cut you open, you scream about how it 'wasn't your fault' and how you 'don't deserve this'! Because God, when they scream, that's the best. You can imagine that princess you killed while you bleed, knowing you're not going to see her when you die."

And suddenly Akihito realized why the jail was always empty.

The only reason Akihito had never been harmed by this guard was because of his immortality. The rest had been killed. The rest of the prisoners - the ones who didn't make it to the end of their sentence or the death that the courts ordered - they must have been killed by this man with the bloodlust in his eyes. They must have all faced his crazed obsessions, and Akihito was only exempt because the guard would never be able to do the harm he wanted to him. Akihito felt even more sick after coming to this realization, the world spinning around him as his breath labored.

But something cold had overtaken the girl's face since the man had started talking. Her eyes were made of steel, fear still hidden under the surface but covered up and hidden behind heavy curtains. Her hand gave her away, shaking as her fingers started to fiddle with the bandages on her palm, as if she were trying to calm herself down.

The guard just grinned wider. Akihito was shaking out of anger, some semblance of energy seeping back into his bones. It was just an empty pretense of adrenaline, but it was more awake than he had felt in a while.

The guard reached the girl, gripped her arm, and a noise of anger ripped out of Akihito's raw and scratchy throat. He didn't want to see as the guard laughed and pressed his arm against her neck, as she started coughing and as -

As she shakily ripped the bandage off her arm, coughing and wobbly but still somehow strong and fierce and utterly _beautiful_. A ruby-red sword dripped out of a deep cut on her palm, solidifying into a smooth weapon of blood. It looked as if every moment she held the sword out was taking its toll; her actions were slow and shaky as she stared at the guard with, what Akihito realized, was complete and utter fear. But Akihito knew that fear - it wasn't the guard she was scared of. It was herself.

He knew that look well enough from staring at his own reflection in the puddles that dripped when it rained.

The guard glared at her. "Huh. So you got a little bit of a bite, huh, little mouse?" But the maniacal look was back in his face after a moment. Abandoning all pretense, he jumped at her. But she quickly slid out of the way, that cold and calculating look hiding her fear at enormous speed. She slashed at his ankles, cutting deep into his skin.

"Ah, _shit!" _The guard cursed, even more angry. He pushed himself up, struggling to stand with blood dripping down his ankles but managing to anyway. Roughly, he pushed at the girl, grabbing her arm and slamming it on the wall behind her. His fist punched into her stomach and she doubled over in pain.

Akihito pulled himself to the edge of the cell, roughly shaking the bars with the little bit of energy he had, pooling up from the anger leaking into his bones.

"St-" He coughed, his throat still like sandpaper from disuse. "_Stop!" _He choked out, knowing full well that the guard would ignore him. But if Akihito could just somehow manage to get the guard to loosen his grip, blink a little too long, miss a beat, he was _sure _the girl would be able to get her bearings enough to protect herself.

So he continued to yell himself even hoarser and rattle at the bars like the end of the world was coming. _Which, _he thought rather cynically, _it would be, for her, if this doesn't work. _

But apparently luck was on his side for once in his life, because the guard eyed Akihito and stupidly took the time to spit in his direction, loosening his grip on the girl's arm. Enough for her to push herself away from the wall and stab the sword into his gut.

Akihito looked up, his energy draining just as fast as it had come. The hunger and the constant pain and the lack of sleep came rushing back over him as he swayed from the sudden loss of adrenaline. But he looked up, and he would never forget the look in her eyes.

It was like the world had ended in front of her. She wasn't even staring at anything, her eyes unfocused and staring at the blood on her hands and the sword in the guard like he was someone else. Tears slowly streaked down her cheeks and her hands trembled as she dropped her sword. It clattered to the ground right as she fell to her knees, shaking and staring at the guard's body.

Akihito managed to pull himself up and call out to her. "Hey, uh - are you okay?"

Halfheartedly, she glared at him. But it was better than the unfocused look in her eyes a minute ago, so Akihito kept babbling. "I mean, I know it looks bad, but honestly, it was self-defense. You did the right thing."

"No," She whispered. "I didn't. I really didn't." And she turned to him, her hair falling like waves around her cheeks and her eyes carrying the guilt of a thousand-man army. "Look at this," She whispered hoarsely. "I killed someone! I killed a person and they're bleeding and _I ended a life!" _

Akihito got the feeling they weren't even talking about the guard anymore. "You ended his life - his crazy, fucked up life - to protect yours. And I can promise you this - whatever you did, whatever happened to get you in this jail, it's not worse than what he did. He killed _so _many people. And you ended that chain, you saved yourself from the same fate. You had every right."

She shook her head violently. "No, no, no, no, no. I didn't. I don't have the right to do anything anymore."

"_Why not?" _Akihito pressed, even though he got the feeling that maybe he shouldn't.

"Leave me alone," she whispered, and that was the end of it.

* * *

_She didn't move, not for a long time. It was as if she were paralyzed; the shaking in her limbs wouldn't go away, her breaths coming in short puffs, air not reaching her lungs and panic taking over her brain. The blood was all over her hands - her sword at her side, left but not forgotten. Looking at it made her want to throw up - more blood, more memory of how she killed - oh god, she killed - her best friend. Yui wouldn't ever wake up. Yui was asleep on the floor, forever, in a blanket of her own blood and Mirai just couldn't move away._

* * *

**hey hey hey look who's back! me ! writing things!**

**so okay, a couple notes because i feel like i need to bring these up:  
1\. about how much i'll be writing this - i'm trying really super hard to come up with these chapters at a reasonable speed, but it's kinda tough with school happening and life doing things. so i can't give any set amounts of time you guys should expect between chapters, because it's honestly going to change based on what's happening with schoolwork and other variables  
2\. the chapters are probably going to continue being varying levels of angst and sadness for a bit, as an fyi - things have to get worse before they get better :) but this chapter is probably one of the heavier ones.  
3\. thanks so much to everyone who favorited and reviewed and followed despite the fact that i'm such a sucky updater! it honestly means so so much and it really helps me get motivated to write more!**

**on that note, if you guys do leave a review, i'll probably end up doing cartwheels in my yard from happiness so feel free to do that**


	3. treasures

**look at the end of the fic for my apology on the lack of updates omg**

* * *

_How do you tell someone that you don't know what happened? Because Akihito didn't. One second he was bleeding, Hiroomi's face blurring in and out of his vision - and the next, he was shakily watching his blood drip from his fingers, slowly and dramatically, like a single raindrop falling from cloudy skies. He didn't know what to tell Izumi. He didn't know what to tell Mitsuki. She would find him and know - she had always seen right through him, known immediately when something was wrong. And now it wasn't just written all over his face. It was written in the dark red liquid lazily dripping from his hands. It was written in the way he couldn't look at his fingers, in how his nails curled into his arms so tightly that his blood mixed with Hiroomi's. It was written everywhere he looked and he couldn't face her. He couldn't face anyone. He couldn't even face his own guilt._

* * *

The first thing that he noticed was the lack of blood. It had all been cleared away, leaving the dark stone floors the same moldy shade they were, before everything happened. But the girl was still looking at the ground as if the blood was there, hands shaking as she stared at the tiles. The night had not changed her posture or horror-filled expression, and it seemed as though she had not moved at all.

It's not like Akihito didn't understand, because he did. After everything that happened with Prince Hiroomi, he still felt like throwing up whenever he looked at his hands, saw the phantom blood staining his fingers - so he didn't look anymore. Instead, he chose watch the girl and the circles that stained her eyes. It looked as if she hadn't slept at all.

Akihito could imagine what would happen if he tried to talk to her, but he couldn't just leave her there to suffer quietly. Her silence was like a blaring alarm in his head - because he had been exactly where she was now.

"Um, hey," He coughed. His voice was usable now. It sounded less like gravel was being poured down his throat and more like someone with a bad cough. But that wasn't to say that it didn't scratch at his throat anytime he tried to speak.

She barely glanced up at him, but Akihito could see the red around her eyes accenting the dark patches of blue. Crying _and _lack of sleep, then.

"Are you okay?" He started again, and then flinched. Why the hell would he ask that? It would be obvious to anyone that she was not okay - she was broken. Ripped apart inside. Destroyed. Every other synonym that could even _possibly_ apply. "I'm sorry," Akihito said, before she could even say anything in response. "Not a good question. I'll start over. How about we go from the beginning?" He was babbling, but she was listening, and so Akihito took that as his cue to continue. "What's your name?"

The most basic of questions, except he still didn't know the answer.

"Mirai. Mirai Kuriyama." She whispered, voice just as destroyed and thin as she looked. Hers matched Akihito's in terms of roughness now, although for the opposite reason - Akihito had had nothing to say and no one to talk to for years. Mirai spent all night sobbing and it reached the same point.

"Hello, Mirai." Akihito said, pleased to finally have a name to put to her beautiful face. "It's a pleasure to finally _correctly _meet you."

Mirai didn't say anything, although her eyes lowered and Akihito could tell this wasn't something she agreed on.

Dragging a hand through his matted and messy hair, Akihito pondered over Mirai. It had been a long time since something had happened to him - and although he was still tired and hungry and filthy, having something to focus on was a far cry from where he before. Focus kept him alert and in control, and that kept his demons at bay.

He wasn't even really sure what he looked like anymore. Mitsuki often brought a mirror when she came to visit, but it'd been a while since she traveled down the stone steps that separated the light of the great castle to the cramped confines of the jail. Why the Princess took the time to visit, Akihito could only guess. He imagined it was her love of calling him names, if nothing else.

He glanced back over at Mirai, who was rubbing at the speckled bandages on her palm and fiddling with the tears in her white dress. Well, her used-to-be white dress. Even just a night on the dirty stone floors had covered it in black patches, staining the fabric and leaving only spots of white, like stars amongst a cloudy gray sky.

"So, Mirai," he started, and then stopped. Akihito knew what he wanted to ask - _What'd you do to end up here - _but he also knew that that wouldn't go over well. He cleared his throat to speak again, but was interrupted.

"Just _stop," _Mirai ground out, clutching at the folds of fabric pooling around her knees. "Just, just stop this! Whatever this is - you trying to be nice to me - stop. It'll only end in pain for both of us."

"More pain than now?" Akihito resisted the urge to laugh. Years in a dungeon did that to you - replaced humor with cynicism.

Mirai opened her mouth, but quickly closed it as footsteps echoed down the stairs.

Princess Mitsuki came rushing down the steps, overloaded with a pile of _things _in her strong grip_\- _old, flattened pillows, stained blankets, worn books, loaves of stale bread. Things that she could smuggle without anyone missing or questioning her about.

It all looked wholeheartedly out of place, the cluster of old mismatched objects against her fresh and beautiful clothes. Her midnight-black hair had been braided and looped into a perfect bun, bangs peeking from underneath her small, silver crown. Her dress was a deep purple, as rich and full as a plum. The layers of velvet pooled around her feet and slid across the dusty floor as she made her way to the two of them, corset tight against her waist and crystal jewels biting into her skin.

"Here," She unceremoniously tossed Akihito a hard chunk of bread, purposefully aiming for his head - which she hit.

"Thanks, Princess," Akihito grinned, tight-lipped at her throw but still enormously grateful. He hadn't had a holiday celebration in years, but for him, Mitsuki's visits were like a holiday in their own way. The few times that he received enough food to quell his hunger and enough warmth to curb the chill of the tiles. in their own way. Quickly, he ripped off a piece of his bread and stuffed it in his mouth, ignoring how desperate he might look. He was, in fact, desperate, so it wasn't like it really mattered.

"Don't call me that," Mitsuki snapped, ever on the offensive, even as her face remained impassive.

"Sure. Princess."

She huffed, but let it go when she noticed the blood staining his fingers and the utter paleness of his skin.

"Again?" She asked quietly, and it was all that Akihito could do to nod. She looked down, eyes unreadable. Akihito always had trouble getting a handle on what Mitsuki was feeling. She liked to guard her emotions as much as her family guarded their secrets. "How long ago?" She asked.

"Not as recent as you think - the blood, it's from something else." He averted his eyes quickly to Mirai in the other cell, and Mitsuki's expression made it clear that she understood.

Glancing back at Mirai, Akihito noticed the slight trembling of her shoulders and the way her fingers curled around her thin arms for warmth. Grabbing one of the thin blankets Mitsuki had brought him, Akihito shoved it between the iron bars for her, placing a piece of his bread on top. Then, for good measure, he shoved one of the new books Mitsuki had brought him at her - maybe they wouldn't talk to each other if that's what Mirai wanted, but Akihito knew that sometimes the best solution was an escape. No matter how boring an escape it may be, he noted, glancing at the title of the book he had haphazardly grabbed - _The History, Growth, and Care of Bonsai in Thirty Easy Chapters._

"Thank you," Mirai quietly ground out, glancing at Akihito. Turning to Mitsuki, she hastily lowered her head, a faint blush on her cheeks and hair covering her eyes. "Princess Mitsuki," She whispered. "Thank you for your kindness. Both in these gifts, and, um, my lack of death."

Mitsuki raised an eyebrow and glanced at Akihito, who frowned.

"Did you think we would kill you?" Mitsuki asked, straight to the point, as always.

Mirai suddenly looked even more uncomfortable, if it was possible. She seemed to shrink into herself, fingers frantically tapping against her knees, gracefully dancing around as she panicked.

"Well, yes," She replied honestly, her voice small, scared, and embarrassed. Akihito felt something crack inside of him - his feelings, probably. Mirai, from all that he had seen, was beautiful and strong, but believed neither of these things were true. It pained him to see someone that stunning believe otherwise.

Mitsuki frowned, eyes boring into Mirai's. Mirai was the first to look away, averting her hazel eyes as a blush formed on her cheeks from the intensity of Mitsuki's gaze.

"We certainly wouldn't." She frowned. "At least, my brother and I wouldn't allow it."

Akihito breathed out a sigh of relief. For all of her teasing, Mitsuki had a good heart, and knew how to use it. She was truly deserving of the title of Princess. _She would make a good Queen, _he thought, feeling oddly proud. Quickly, he scrubbed that feeling out. He needed to stop trying to connect himself to Princess Mitsuki so much. They couldn't, and would likely never, be friends, Akihito reminded himself. He almost killed her brother. He was a prisoner, holy hell. That wasn't a likely scenario.

"Besides," Mitsuki's voice cut through his thoughts. "If we let _this _idiot live -" She jerked a finger in Akihito's direction, and he narrowed his eyes, though his glare contained no real malice - "We certainly wouldn't do anything of such horrible consequence to _you, _who is almost certainly better at everything than this pervert."

"Gee, thanks." Akihito said dryly.

"Anytime." Mitsuki smiled. In his mind, Akihito quickly took back the statement about her being a good queen.

The playful attitude ended when Mitsuki turned away from Mirai to face Akihito head-on.

"What's wrong?" He asked, a feeling of dread pooling in his stomach. Mitsuki had her 'no-nonsense and no-shit' look, meaning she was about to deliver some cold, hard truth to him.

"You haven't heard." She stated.

"I am currently in jail, in the deepest dungeon in your castle, so, no, not so much."

She ignored his sarcasm. Akihito snapped into focus. Mitsuki never ignored a jab or sass - it was simply not in her nature. This had to be serious, then. "It's the Hollow Shadow." She started, and Akihito felt fear gather in his chest. "It's back."

A fearful squeak from the cell over let Akihito know that Mirai knew exactly what they were talking about.

"When?" He asked.

"Tonight. The sky is already turning darker. All of the citizens are in total unrest. It's chaos outside."

He groaned, slamming his forehead into his knees. Akihito ran his hands through his papery-thin blonde hair, trying to focus. "The jail is warded," he recalled, turning to face Mitsuki again. "There's no way it could reach down here, right? If I get possessed -"

Mitsuki nodded solemnly - she knew what would happen. The entire Nase family did.

"It shouldn't be able to get down here." She agreed. "But stranger things have happened." Mitsuki glanced out the small window, taking notice of the dropping sun. "Just - just don't let anything happen, alright? If you cause destruction tonight, it'll get out to the kingdom. We can't control every bit of information that gets released, and everyone is shaken up already. I don't want to have to..." She trailed off, and cleared her throat. "I don't want to have to take drastic measures, alright? Don't put us through that. Just stay awake and calm and don't do _anything._"

She turned around quickly, shoving the rest of the basket of leftovers into Akihito's hands. He thought he heard a hoarse whisper of "Please," come from her throat as she turned, but he couldn't be sure. "Just stay low, alright?" She then called out loudly, turning to face him one last time from the steps of the stone staircase.

"I can't really get much lower," Akihito noted. "I'm literally in the deepest floor of your dungeon."

Mitsuki's stare was enough to make him stop talking.

And with that farewell glare - a phrase that embodied her better than anything else Akihito had ever heard - Mitsuki was gone just as fast as she came, her starlit dress trailing after her as she disappeared up the stairs.

Nothing left evidence of her even being there, except for the clear patch of ground where the dust had been pushed away and the small stack of old books, blankets, food, and water she had delivered. Quickly sifting through the treasures, Akihito separated the blankets, food, and water, pushing some more provisions across to Mirai. He certainly wouldn't make her suffer with just half a slice of stale bread while he feasted on the rest. Even though it pained him to give away food with his stomach angrily protesting, seeing Mirai happy - or at least, not hungry - would be worth it.

His offerings were left untouched, and Akihito glanced up at the girl in question. Dread pooled in his stomach as he remembered her squeak at the mention of the Hollow Shadow. She obviously had a history with the creature, and while he didn't want to dredge up bad memories, it would be nearly impossible to avoid talking about it.

Mirai looked haunted. The circles underneath her eyes seemed to stand out more than before, dark as the night sky against her white skin, which had gone about ten shades paler through the course of the conversation. Her hands were shaking and she was fiddling with the bandages tightly wrapped across her palm, never undoing them but constantly pulling, as if she wished to take them off but couldn't. Remembering the blood sword from before, Akihito realized that maybe she really couldn't just pull them off without consequence.

"Do you want to talk about it?" He asked, not knowing where else to start.

She whipped her head around, hair flying in her face in strawberry strands. "Talk about what?" She whispered, as if someone would overhear.

"Whatever you're so scared of - did you think I wouldn't notice your reaction to the name 'Hollow Shadow'? So, I'm wondering if you want to talk about it."

"No." She answered simply, leaving no room for argument. Akihito knew better than to push. He quickly searched his mind for another topic, at least something to take her mind off of whatever it was that she was focused on.

"Where are you from?" He asked out of the blue, realizing that he didn't actually know.

"What?"

"What kingdom?" He clarified.

"Um..."

"You don't know?"

"I wasn't exactly taught much as a child! Honestly, I was mostly alone for a very long time." She puffed, cheeks flushed. "I was in whatever kingdom the Inamis rule. I was sent here because it has a better prison, more equipped to deal with someone like me." She spat out the last part as though the words were acid in her mouth.

"Alright," Akihito decided, turning to face the beautiful girl head-on, looking her in the eyes. "You need to know these things. We'll talk more about the Hollow Shadow and everything you won't tell me later -" He pointedly glared at her, channeling his best 'Mitsuki look' to show how serious he was about this topic. "But for now, I think you need some education on the ways of the world, since you've clearly been isolated for most of your life."

"A tower," She shrugged, eyes staring into space. "I just lived there, until one day Yui climbed up and brought me down with her. After that I became her servant, and I'd like to think, her best friend."

Akihito stayed quiet for a moment out of respect and sadness. Whatever happened with Princess Yui Inami, this moment was not the time to pry. In the end, it was up to Mirai when she felt that he could be trusted with her secrets - though that wouldn't stop him from asking later.

"The kingdom," He started after she cleared her throat and glanced up at him. "The one we're in now, is the Center Rule. It's led by the Nase family - Queen Izumi, Prince Hiroomi, and Princess Mitsuki. You just met her, obviously. The kingdom to the east, or the East Rule, is where you lived. It's led by Princess Yui's parents and Princess Sakura, although you know that. The Kingdom just below, the South Rule, is led by Princess Ai and Queen Ayaka. Then there's the North Rule, which is led by..."

He trailed off, not really sure how much of _himself_ he wanted to divulge to _her_. "Queen Yayoi. And in the west," Akihito hastily added, partially to get off of the topic of the Northern Rule and partially because it was important Mirai know this - "the west is dangerous. There's just the Boundary. No one really wants to go there, since it's suspected that that's where the youmu - things like the Hollow Shadow - that's where they manifest and do their work. There's a lot of rumors - bright lights, men with many arms, echoes of past lives - it's all compiled and stuffed into the idea of the 'Boundary'. That's how we get the Calm, too. A lot of the religion is actually very based off of that one place, actually. If -" Akihito swallowed. "_When _you're released, I would steer clear of there in particular."

Mirai had been watching him intently, hanging onto his every word - knowledge was a rare thing when you didn't have anyone to learn from. But with the mention of her eventual release, Akihito could see the world come slamming back onto her shoulders. The illusion that they were normal people, casually talking together was shattered. Suddenly she was a prisoner again, and he was her cellmate, and they were just a pair of monsters in the dungeon where they belonged.

* * *

_ The guards found her quickly. It would be hard not to, she rationalized. There was blood everywhere, and her own sobs must be louder than the rain pounding outside. She couldn't even see clearly; her vision was too obstructed by tears, blurring the dark red carpet of blood around her. They came in groups, armor clanking loudly - but still, not louder than her tears. They came, and then they stopped. She didn't turn around and she didn't see them, but she could only imagine the horror on their faces as they took in the scene - the dead princess, bloodied and ruined, with her best friend crying over the body. With the murder weapon in hand._

* * *

**hey so i know it's been forever! i am so absolutely sorry for the lack of updates. i know that no excuse is really any good, but in way of explanation, i had a lot going on in my life. add major writer's block to that and you get my absence. i did write a longer chapter than usual, if that makes it better!**

**on the bright side, i did spend that time figuring out exactly where i want this story to go, so the main plot is now being set up. i tried to get in some big akkey / mitsuki frienship and the start of some akirai in this chapter plus some explanation as to the world this takes place in? i was halfway through writing this when i realized i hadn't properly explained how the kingdoms worked yet. whoops. **

**so, yeah, let me know what you think of the chapter! your reviews honestly fuel my desire to write, which is nice for both me and you guys!**


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